Which countries of the former USSR do Russian tourists visit?

Among foreign destinations, Russians now have access to tours to some former republics of the USSR. Sergey Romashkin, general manager of the Dolphin tour operator, told socialbites.ca that the requested leaders are Armenia, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan and Georgia.

Now the activity of the Russians has increased: the demand for travel to these countries has increased. However, Romashkin noted that this is likely to coincide with a wave of exits from Russia, and that some of these people are not tourists.

Intourist told socialbites.ca that they have recently intensified demand for holidays in Armenia. They attributed this to the lifting of covid restrictions. The press service said that the Russians are actively booking flights for the May holidays, but now sales “cannot be called stable” due to the constant changes in the schedule and the cancellation of flights.

He regularly organizes trips to Azerbaijan, Armenia and Uzbekistan. The tour operator is also considering the possibility of launching tours to Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.

Anex Tour only organizes tours to Azerbaijan and Armenia. The press service noted that the demand for them is now “small”, but there is interest in these areas.

A sightseeing tour of Armenia for two, departing in May, starts at 85,400 rubles. three nights (flight included, all meals included). A ski tour will cost 87,000 rubles. four nights (with flight, all meals included), tours with treatment – from 137,500 rubles. seven nights (by plane, three meals a day and treatment). Russians can visit Yerevan, Jermuk and Tsaghkadzor (ski holiday). Under the program, a five-night tour of Azerbaijan with a meal for two will cost 100,900 rubles. (only land travel is currently offered).

What does tour and ticket reservation services say?

Evgeny Ginzburg, Marketing Director of the Level.Travel online tour search and purchase service, said that only tours to the resorts of Abkhazia are currently in high demand among neighboring countries. It accounted for 5% of sales in March, which was 3% higher than a year ago. The cost of tours this month starts from 23 thousand rubles. for two for seven days (round trip, transfer to hotel, insurance, accommodation in guesthouse, no meals).

There is a small demand for tours to Armenia (less than 1% of sales). Prices for tours here start from 79 thousand rubles. seven days for two people (round trip, transfer, insurance, accommodation in a 3-star hotel and breakfast included).

But Ginzburg added that tours to Azerbaijan, Belarus and Uzbekistan are still “chosen by a small number of tourists.”

The cost of a trip to Azerbaijan in March starts from 112 thousand rubles. seven days for two persons (round-trip flight, transfer, insurance, accommodation in a 5-star hotel without meals). Holidays in Belarus will cost 51 thousand rubles. for two persons for seven days (round-trip flight, transfer, insurance, accommodation in the sanatorium with breakfast, lunch and dinner). The price of tours to Uzbekistan starts from 107 thousand rubles. seven days for two persons (round trip flight, transfer, insurance, accommodation in a 4-star hotel including breakfast).

According to travel planning service OneTwoTrip, the ten most popular destinations for reservations among the countries of the former USSR since the beginning of March are Armenia (21.2% of other foreign flight bookings), Kyrgyzstan (6.4%), Azerbaijan (5%) ,3) took place. ), Uzbekistan (5.2%), Tajikistan (3.7%), Georgia (3.6%), Kazakhstan (3.3%) and Belarus (2.3%). Head of the press service Elena Shelekhova added that compared to the same period of February, demand increased the most in Kazakhstan (64%) and Georgia (38%).

What are the challenges facing the tourism industry?

Sergey Romashkin, complicating the trip is the fact that recently the number of flights has decreased, flight prices have increased. Good The ruble fell not only against the dollar, but also against other currencies. In some countries, coronavirus restrictions are still in place – PCR tests, vaccination requirement. There are also problems with cards of Visa and Mastercard payment systems – they do not work abroad.

“The tourist flow is recovering very slowly. “The travel economy is such that tourists, no matter how well they treat a country, cannot pay more than 50-60% compared to a month ago,” said Romashkin. “Right now is not a good time for tourism. Tourists have slightly different priorities,” he added.

The press service of Anex Tour also noted that the tourism industry is very dependent on external conditions. Therefore, in recent years there has been a trend: the choice of destinations is based on the criterion of accessibility for Russians. Now Russian tourists more prefer the resorts of the Krasnodar Territory and sightseeing tours in the cities of Russia – these are St. Petersburg, Kaliningrad, Kazan and others.